Contemporary and Vintage Christmas Cards

A quick post ... busy, busy. The first two cards are contemporary. I love the difference just changing colors makes! Which do you prefer? Do you like the more traditional color scheme or modern?

The third card has a more of a vintage feel to it. Even though I haven't made many layered cards lately, I do love the "Debbie Olsen look". I just have a hard time knowing when enough is enough =D

A Blessed and Merry Christmas to everyone. Thank you for your visits to my blog.

Hugs,


Colleen

Happy Birthday, Ashley!!

I took a break from making Christmas gifts a few days ago to make a special birthday card for my niece. Using the cupcake from Papertrey Ink's "Sign Language", my favorite Martha Stewart punch and a sentiment from Paper Smooches, I came up with this colorful ditty for the cupcake-loving Ashley. Happy Birthday, sweetie! I can't wait to see you next week.

Thanks for dropping by today. I know everyone is super busy.

Hugs,
Colleen

Colorful Gift Card Set

This is the first time I've used this year's Papertrey Ink anniversary set. I don't know what took me so long. By having my PTI stamps segregated, I sometimes forget about a set if I haven't used it.

These cards were inspired by this post of Susan Raihala's  from back in July. I didn't CASE it entirely, but close. Most of the cards have a touch of bling using Copics' Spica glitter pens, and that doesn't show in the photos.

Sorry for the misalignment of the photos. I could not for the life of me get these arranged properly.

Thank you for the visit today. Have a great weekend.

Hugs,
Colleen

Second Post for Today!

It's crunch time on Christmas cards and gift sets, so just in time I'm feeling the mojo stir and the ideas are flying. Be sure to check out the Santa card in the post below this one.

I used a Hero Arts background for this card using Versamark Dazzle on a cream base and heat embossing it. Love the sophistication this adds to a card. The die wreath is from Memory Box and the Poinsettia die and sentiment is Papertrey Ink's. Looking at the photo, I think a little inking around the edge of the card might look nice. I may try that. It feels like it needs something..

Now to clean up the royal mess I made for two cards =D

Thanks stopping by.

Hugs,
Colleen

Paper Smooches Santa Card

Kim Hughes of Paper Smooches has some of the cutest stamps! This little Santa has been sitting on my desk for a couple of weeks just begging to be inked, and just by dusting off my Copics and coloring him, I think I finally woke my mojo from hibernation =D It feels so good to get inky and be creative.

The background stamp is from Northwoods, and I stamped it in the new Evergreen Bough Distress Ink from Tim Holtz. Popped up Santa and added the inside sentiment "Ho, Ho, HO!" I know just who I'm sending this to....

Thank you for your visit today.

Hugs,
Colleen

Less Is More Week 41 One Layer - Leaves

It took this challenge at Less is More to motivate me to make a card. I played a bit recently, but couldn't seem to complete anything blog-worthy. All stamps used are from Memory Box.  The inks used were Kiwi Kiss, More Mustard, Pumpkin Pie, Riding Hood Red and Cajun Craze from Stampin' UP! for the leaves and VersaMagic Jumbo Java for the wreath. The impression plate is from Papertrey Ink, and the ribbon is Stampin'UP! that I customized using Copic YG21.

It sure feels good getting inky and participating in a challenge. Just what the doctor ordered!

Thank you for stopping by.

Hugs,
Colleen

My, How Quickly Things Can Change!!

Hmm.. I only thought I was busy before.

You know that I seldom discuss personal issues on my blog. You come here to be inspired by my wonderful card creations and uber coloring skills =D, but please indulge me today.

A few weeks ago my husband had a serious heart attack . . . I came very close to losing him. This wonderful, handsome, caring, generous man is the rock of my life, my partner and best friend, and I'm still reeling from the shock of almost losing him. I'm assessing our life and re-evaluating priorities as we make necessary lifestyle changes.  And NO, I'm not shutting down my blog or giving up crafting . . . quite the contrary. I need this creative outlet more than ever. I just wanted needed to share this with you. Without a doubt, God was with us. I'm feeling extremely thankful and blessed and ask you to keep us in your prayers.

If my mojo hasn't completely deserted me, I hope to have something crafty to post later.

{{{BIG HUGS}}}

Birthday Wishes, Alayna Leigh!!!

A very special young lady turns 8 today!! Happy Birthday, Alayna! PopPop and I love you very much and hope you have a wonderful day.

Alayna loves cats =D, so I decided to make her card using this cat from Unity. I paper pieced her with some A Muse tiny black gingham dp and SU! Melon Mambo card stock. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink and the ribbon is also  Melon Mambbo SU! I added a little bling with Spica pens on the eyes and heart charm. Alayna, I hope you like your card, sweetie!

Thank you for stopping by today as we celebrate Alayna's birthday, and I hope you have a great Tuesday.

Hugs,
Colleen

Quick Post, Quick Card

Using a sentiment shared by Papertrey Ink during their anniversary celebration, I made a quick anniversary card using some A Muse patterned paper.

Still trying to carve out some "me" creative time . . .

I so appreciate your visit today.

Hugs,
Colleen

Quick and Easy

Busy, busy, busy! But so is everyone. I'm seriously in need of some creative release and hope to make up for lost time beginning now.

Here is a clean and simple birthday card that can go masculine or feminine depending on your choice of cardstock and designer paper. It's difficult to see in the photo, but I started with PTI aqua mist card stock stamped in versamark with a birthday background from Impression Obsession. Using some pp scraps to create presents, I cut the bows using a Memory Box die. The gold package is popped up adding some dimension.

I look forward to participating in some challenges this week, so stay tuned ;)

Thanks for taking time to stop by.

Hugs,
Colleen

OLW 64: Color It and Less is More 33

This week's OLW challenge by Susan is to COLOR IT! Stamp an outline image and color it with your choice of color medium. I chose this image from Stamps by Judith and colored it using various Copics. My paper of choice for a Copic colored one-layer card is Gina K's heavy weight card stock . . . wonderful stuff!! 

I'm also entering this card in the Less is More Challenge #33, Anything CAS Goes! Chrissie and Mandi have a goal to reach 1000 cards by the end of this week. Go, go, go!!!

Thank you for the visit today. Comments always welcome *wink*

Hugs,
Colleen

OLW63!!!! Welcome Back!!!

I'm so-o-o-o happy that OLW has resumed its weekly challenges.  Wednesdays just weren't the same without it =)

Jennifer is hosting this week and the challenge is to create a one-layer baby themed card. Using a Sizzix die, an Impress polka dot border and sentiment from Stampin' UP!, my card is done! Well actually it wasn't quite that easy. My plan was to use a gingham background, but that just didn't work out on paper like it did in my head . . . sigh. Anyway, so happy to have time to play today. Life is just crazy lately.

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs,
Colleen

Colorful Thank You

Last year at Stampaway I purchased a stamp from Red Lead with tiny polka dots closely spaced primarily for the purpose of creating my own polka dotted embellishments. It's taken a year for that idea to come to fruition, but here ya go . . .

I used Stampin' UP! card stock and separated the layers for a more layered look without the thickness. The background stamp is a "Ditto" dittie (*snort*) that I found on clearance at Michael's. Sentiments are from Papertrey Ink.

A very happy, safe Labor Day to my US readers. I'm looking forward to cooking out with the kids and grandkids.

As always, thank you for stopping by.

Hugs,
Colleen

Inspired by Carol

This post by Carol was the inspiration for my card. In particular, the card with the cattails and elusive Hero Arts sentiment is my favorite. I say "elusive" because my search for that stamp has come up empty. Never mind that I probably have a hundred (Carol is laughing because it's more like two hundred) other "thank you" stamps, that one must be mine. Can't find the cattails either . . [sigh]. When I do find these, I'll probably forget why I wanted them . . . now don't act like you've never done that . . . uh huh.

Memory Box Script background, Hampton Arts flower, PTI sentiment, and a little bling to create that design triangle thingy.

Thank you for stopping by and have a great evening.

Hugs,
Colleen

Practicing with Copics

Just a quick post to share a couple of cards I made and colored with Copics. The Daisy image is from Magenta, and the Sunflowers from Our Daily Bread.

Hugs,

Colleen

Catching Up!

Once again I find myself apologizing for neglecting my blog. Life just gets in the way at times, unfortunately. And although I haven't been posting, I have been making a few cards.

Today is my sister's wedding anniversary (Happy Anniversary, Sis!!), and this is the card I made. Using a Martha Stewart punch and some scraps, I created this background. (Boy it's a bugger to get those squares centered just right!) The flower was created using PTI's Sending You set and flower punches.

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs,
Colleen

OLW59 Inspiration Challenge

Susan's One-Layer Wednesday challenge this week is to let this picture from Pinterest inspire our creativity. Usually my thoughts evolve as I put ideas to paper, but this week I instantly thought of my PTI Year Of Flowers Collection and the Savvy Outline Dot Background stamp. The challenge for me was making it a one-layer card. I will still cover the sentiment with a popped up message later. In retrospect, I should have found a bolder,  larger sentiment for this instead of trying to squeeze one between dots.

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs,
Colleen

OLW57 Summer Holidays!

WooHOO!!  Two posts in one day, and I finally get to participate in the OLW Challenge. I've missed it so!

This week Jennifer has tasked us with creating a card "that is inspired by any or all of the following: summer, the beach, the sea, sun, sand, the lake, the cottage – pretty much anything that says summer and/or summer holidays." I just posted a card here for Emily's birthday on Tuesday that would qualify, but to stay legal, I inked up a new-to-me stamp from Catslife Press and paired it with an older Stampendous cling stamp that I think of anytime the word "beach" is mentioned in connection to stamping. I filled in the image a bit with my neglected colored pencils (wow am I rusty!) and added Rock Candy Stickles to the "water's" edge for some sparkle.

Now, please check out Tuesday's post and tell me which card you like better ;)

Thank you for stopping by.

Hugs,
Colleen

Happy Anniversary, Carol and John!

Just can't let the day pass without giving a shout out to Carol and John to wish them a happy anniversary. Have a great day guys!

This is the card I sent . . . nothing fancy. The ol' mojo definitely needing to be recharged.

I'll be back a little later to post my OLW card.

Hugs,
Colleen

Happy Birthday, Emily!!

This post is a day late, but that's okay because Emily celebrates her birthday for at least a week =)

A simple card using an Inkadinkado dolphin from one of their mini sets, a sentiment from Hero Arts and the wave border punch from Fiskars. I colored the dolphin with Copics and raised part of the waves and the dolphin with pop dots. Added some Crystal Effects on the splash for more texture and dimension, and rounded the corners because I wanted to =D

Thank you for stopping by today. Hopefully, my posts will get more regular again.

Hugs,
Colleen

Versatile Blogger Award!

Thank you, KingstonMama!

My thanks to KingstonMama for including me in her Versatile Blogger award list! I'm honored that she finds my blog inspiring. Google and Blogger aren't playing nice tonight, so I wasn't able to comment on her blog post or send an email to thank her properly. Here's hoping she sees this blog post. Thank you, sweetie!

Now, I need to share some things about myself.....hmmmm....

1) Besides card making, I love to crochet! I crocheted many years ago and haven't touched it for years, so am re-teaching myself.

2) I worked for ten years in pharmaceutical sales traveling all over Kentucky, So. Indiana and Cincinnati. I "retired" early when my dad became ill.

3) I have seven wonderful, beautiful, grandchildren and another on the way in July.

4) I have enough stamps and card making supplies to open my own store . . . seriously.

5) My husband is the most wonderful man in the world. I'm so lucky and a better person for loving him.

There are so many wonderful bloggers out there that making a short list to pass this award to would be impossible for me. So if you're reading my blog today, consider yourself a winner!

I appreciate the visits today.

Hugs,
Colleen

Retirement Card

Please forgive a quick post . . . (why do I wait so late to get on the computer?) I made this card for the recently retired husband of my friend Carol. Stamps by Verve (happy) and A Muse (retirement); banner die by Papertrey Ink.

Thank you so much for stopping by today.

Hugs,
Colleen

Projects That Have Been Keeping Me Busy

This evening I want to share pictures of some purses that I made recently. The inspiration for these came when my friend, Carol, and I were shopping at a rubber stamp store and spotted the cutest little paper purse. With no information or templates available, we studied the original, changed the buckle, added a "name plate" and tweaked a couple of things to come up with our own version of that purse. At my craft sales, I had a prototype that I took orders from, and I sold a purse with a set of six cards for $35. The first purse went to a dear friend for her birthday. I did not get pictures of every purse or the card sets for each, but here are a few. Some of the pictures were taken before I added the buttons to the front. (PS: The front pocket is a perfect place for a book of stamps.) I tried to coordinate the cards somewhat to the purses without making them too labor intensive. It's been a lot of fun making these and seeing the reactions of my customers, but I'm anxious to get back to participating in challenges and catching up on my blog surfing (blurfing?), so hope to get more regular in my posts again soon. Thank you for your patience. Please forgive the mixed up photos. Blogger is playing games with me tonight.

Hugs,
Colleen

OLW52 Round and Round

The Simplicity challenge this week is to "use a circle or multiple circles" on a one-layer card. I immediately thought of this stamp from Savvy with open circles that can be colored to coordinate with any design. After filling in the circles with a Copic, I added a K & Co. Grand Adhesion iris and a sentiment from Hero Arts for a super quick card. I was even able to get a good picture. Life is good.

Thanks for the visit. I hope your week is a good one.

Hugs,
Colleen

Pick An Age You Like

Just a quick post. I made this card a few weeks ago and totally forgot it was in the camera waiting on me. I've been hoarding some JoAnn's trim that I finally decided it was time to use, and these stamps from American Art Stamps seemed like a good choice. The ladies are colored with Copics and mounted on Circa dp and the neglected trim that inspired me.

Thanks for the visit.

Hugs,
Colleen

Less is More Week #10 Sentiment Focus

A quick post to participate in another challenge this week. I'm on a roll!

This week's Less is More challenge is to create a card with the sentiment as the focal point. As soon as I saw this challenge I knew just the sentiment I wanted to use. It's from Stampendous and has not seen ink yet because it is so large that I wasn't sure what to do with it. Ok, I'll make it the focal point (duh!) I stamped the background with a stamp from Stampin' UP! in Memento Pear Tart (luv that color), added the sentiment on top of that with Memento Rich Cocoa, placed some Copic colored-to-match pearls in a triangle and rounded the corners of the Classic Crest cream card base. Done! And I couldn't be more pleased with it. Doncha just love it when an idea comes together better than you envisioned it?

Thank you for your visit today. Comments most appreciated ;D

Big Hugs,
Colleen

FLT 135

Go me! Three challenges in four days! That's what I'm talking about!

This My Minds Eye 6x6 paper pad has been calling my name ever since I got it. And FTL 135 reminded me of the Edger Die that I got from PTI but have not used. I tend to get in a rut, using the same dies, embossing folders and even the same few "go to" stamp sets. So I welcomed the opportunity to stretch that box a bit and use something new from my stash. The flowers are from Papertrey Ink's Beautiful Blooms II that I stamped, cut out, crumpled, and layered with a PTI button and twine as a finishing touch. The sentiment is from Hero Arts . . . uh . .  a well-loved set . . .  Ok, so Rome wasn't built in a day, my friends =D

Thanks for taking time to visit. Comments most welcome ;)

Hugs,
Colleen

OLW 48: A Sympathetic Challenge

This week's creative challenge from Susan is to create a one-layer sympathy card using an image other than a flower or tree. So, after finding a sentiment favorite, I decided this butterfly from Inkadinkado was the perfect accompaniment. I tried two different backgrounds giving totally different looks, so am posting both.

Thank you for the visit today. Your comments are much appreciated ;)

Hugs,

Colleen

PTI Make it Monday #9

This week's challenge from Papertrey Ink is to using heat embossing on your project. Since heat embossing is what first intrigued and sucked me in to this hobby many years ago, I put aside some other projects I'm working on to participate in this week's challenge. I started by using Versamark to clear emboss the largest leaves from Turning a New Leaf on to a background of Spring Moss card stock. I then used PTI's Diamonds Impressions Plate to add texture and stamped a sentiment from Flower Fusion #1. Using the flower die from FF#1, I cut flowers from PTI Hawaiian Shores, Orange Zest and Raspberry Fizz, crumpled those and punched centers for them from card stock stamped with a Bitty Background Block that matches the Diamonds Impression Plate. (Be still my heart, I do so love that about PTI products). I pop dotted the flowers to the leaves and matted the entire piece using a Vintage Cream top folded card base. It all came together quickly and very nicely, if I do say so myself =D

Thanks for stopping by today.

Hugs,

Colleen

Some Birdie's Thinking of You

It's late. My team just lost. And for the life of me I cannot remember which clear stamp set I used on this card. I think my brain is turning to mush. I want to say it's Impression Obsession . . .

One item of note: The ribbon is seam binding dyed to match with a Copic . . . B05. (Now that I remember - go figure.) Ok, so my memory loss appears to be selective. I may never buy ribbon again (yeh, right). But I'll no longer spend as long looking for matching ribbon as I do making the card. And a great tip shared with me by my friend Carol is to use the Tim Holtz craft sheet under the seam binding during the dyeing process and then the precious Copic ink isn't absorbed and can even be worked into the seam binding . . . no wasted ink! Awesome tip, Carol!

That's it for me! I appreciate your visit today, and I hope you have a wonderful Sunday.

Hugs,

Colleen